sticker shock

Thirty-three U.S. states and jurisdictions spend $100,000 or more annually to incarcerate a young person, and continue to generate outcomes that result in even greater costs, according to a report released by the Justice Policy Institute. The report estimates costs resulting from negative outcomes associated with the incarceration of juveniles, including lost wages and higher rates of recidivism, and finds that these consequences could cost taxpayers $8 billion to $21 billion each year.